Timecrimes

Timecrimes (2007)

This is one of the coolest movies that I’ve ever seen having to do with time travel. Hector is sitting in his backyard minding his own business when he suddenly spots a beautiful young woman in the woods taking her clothes off. But something doesn’t seem right about this and Hector spots a strange figure in the woods. Being the good guy that he is he heads off to investigate and ends up being attacked and chased by a man with his head wrapped in bandages. Taking refuge in a nearby science facility he ends up being sent back in time several hours. Realizing that he has to make sure things go exactly as they did before he gets pulled further and further into his own past, going back again to make sure everything goes according to time. How many Hectors does it take to make things right?

This is a really cool movie that could have been very confusing. The different timelines and various versions of Hector running about her handled in such a way that everything makes sense and is wrapped up nicely at the end. Well I suppose nicely is the wrong word, but it does have a great ending that totally makes sense. Juggling the story like this isn’t an easy thing to pull off, but director and writer Nacho Vigalondo does it very well. If making a compelling time travel story isn’t enough the Hector character goes thru hell during the day that will never end (literally!) and ends up changing a great deal. Without going into detail and spoiling the movie lets just say Hector has to do some pretty despicable things, and does so without thinking about it. Of course this dramatic change in the character is well written, but also has to be performed by an actor with talent. Karra Elejalde is great as Hector, and pulls off a very believable character in a most unbelievable situation.

From a technical standpoint the movie is just as good as it is from a story and character standpoint. The special effects are kept at a minimum, but the sets do look pretty cool and realistic. I guess this is sort of funny to say about a time travel movie, but basically it does look like a modern science facility. Hector does get pretty torn up as the day goes along, but there really isn’t gore and very little blood. The camera work is sharp and movie does look very nice. Really that is about it for the behind the camera stuff.

Timecrimes is a very well made and entertaining movie. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but does put a cool twist on the idea of time travel. This really is an interesting movie that I’m going to recommend everyone give a chance. It is available from Magnet and is part of the Six Shooter film series. For more information check out the website at http://www.magnetreleasing.com/index.html

3 out of 4

reviewed by John Shatzer